LAST UPDATE | 21 Dec 2022
LATVIA HAVE been confirmed as Ireland’s first opponents of 2023.
The two teams will meet at the Aviva Stadium in a friendly on 22 March (kick-off: 7.45pm).
The game will serve as important preparation for Ireland’s European Championship qualification campaign.
Stephen Kenny’s side’s first qualifier will be at home to World Cup runners-up France on 27 March amid a two-game international window for the Boys in Greece, whose second qualifier will be away to Greece on 16 June.
Netherlands and Gibraltar will also be vying to secure one of the two automatic qualification spots in Group B.
Ticket details for the March international window will be clarified at a later date.
Formerly part of the Soviet Union and with an estimated population of a little under two million, Latvia finished fifth in the group in their most recent World Cup qualification campaign and are currently ranked 134th in the world — 85 places below Ireland.
Nearly all of their squad is based in Latvia and they’ve qualified once in their history for a major tournament — the 2004 Euros.
I thought he retired
@The Debater: they did a big montage video in the stadium after he was knocked out of the Aus Open where all the big players wished him luck in his retirement. Awkward enough.
I’ve huge respect for this fella.
Loses 10 grand slam finals to the big three and still kept going.
Was stuck in the corridor in his school in Dunblane while his teacher was shooting pupils.
Thought enough of his country to attend 2 olympics where he won Gold twice.
(No Zika virus excuses there).
Won two Wimbledon’s with all the pressure that went with that.
If he was Irish we would love him.
He’s a fair one.
love his guts.
Didn’t whinge about the Zika virus either.
Went to Rio and won his second Gold.
Two Wimbledon, Davis cup winning captain. U.S open champion..
Ex world number one.
all this while losing eight slam finals to the big three.
Some tenacity to stay going.
If he was Irish we’d love him.